Thrillers & Technothrillers - Writers League...

Thrillers & Technothrillers

Subgenres

Three-Act Play

Typical multi-stage plotline

How are thrillers different?

Exotic Locations

Technothriller challenges

Unfamiliar Technologies

Thriller / Suspense

MercenaryMysteryPoliticalPsychologicalReligiousRomantic Spy/EspionageSupernatural/ParanormalSurvivalistTechnothrillerTreasure Hunter

ActionAviationCrimeComedicConspiracyDisaster Eco-thrillerExplorationForensicLegalMedical

Subgenres

• Focus on solving a life or death problem• Conflict & confrontation• High level of anticipation and suspense• Keep the reader alert, on the edge of their seat

Gary Kurtz, producer of A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back in an LA Times

interview

"I took a master class with Billy Wilder once and he said that:

In the first act of a story you put your character up in a tree

And the second act you set the tree on fire

And then in the third you get him down.“

Three Act Play

Multi-Stage Plot Line

Opening

NormalRoutine

IncitingIncident

RisingAction

FirstClimax

EverythingChanges

NewObstacle

PenultimateClimax

FinalObstacle

BigClimax

Dénouement

FinalTwist

(optional)

EndMultipleStages

How are Thrillers Different?Opening chapter / paragraph:• Jump into action immediatelyPlotline:• Leap to inciting incident quickly• Action-driven (intense, non-stop)• Big climax requiredCharacters:• Strong motivations (protagonist & antagonist)• In personal danger• Extreme action results in significant character arcs• Make reactions raw & realistic (crude if appropriate)Conflict:• More extreme, scary, violent• Action scenes in real-time - major characters’ POV• Shorter quiet periods• “Kill your darlings” – screw up the life of the protagonists• End most chapters (and scenes) with a “hook”

Experience Exotic Locations

Technothriller ChallengesAccessible to wide audience:• Emphasize real-world consequences – vividly• Minimize explanation of details – VERY IMPORTANT• Just enough detail to sound authentic• Remember some readers know the technology• Credibility – even when not practical today

Avoid deus ex machina• Solutions to difficult problems must be realistic• Little Red Riding Hood – the woodcutter• Avoid sudden introduction of character or technology• If this is critical, lay the groundwork earlier (don’t cheat the reader)

Unfamiliar Technologies

Plutonium in Glovebox

Bomb-Sniffing Bees

Octocopter

Available on Amazon:- Kindle & Unlimited- Paperback

Also in Barnes & Noble

2018 Release Planned

Web Page: www.pryorpatch.comEmail: mark.pryor@pryorpatch.comFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/markapryor.authorTwitter: https://twitter.com/PryorPatchLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-a-pryor/